You Provide the Memories. We Help You Glow.

Sparking connection through writing. Kindling stories into legacy.

Winner, WILD Accelerator
Female Founders, 2018

We've Started Fires in These Places

Starting a Fire

We Deal in Warming Hearts.

Watch how we spark imagination, memory and create friendships.

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For Individuals & Families

Our COVID-19 Pivot.

COVID-19 has caused all of our lives to change dramatically.

We knew Feet to the Fire Writers’ Workshops® had to change too. More people feel isolated now than ever before during pandemic life. To help you, your family and friends feel actively engaged, we are proud  to offer our consumer version– Feet to the Fire Writers’ Workshops® Writer’s Kits and Virtual Groups to help you start writing as a tool for self expression, ease the burden of lonesomeness, and provide much-needed connection to others.

We’re here to help you write down your own stories and find purpose in thinking back on fond memories to bring joy.

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For Senior Living Communities

How We Start a Fire.

Feet to the Fire Writers’ Workshops® is a licensed program designed for use in senior/assisted-living communities and wellness organizations. Created to compliment aging adults’ personal activity schedules, our writing program provides an opportunity for lifelong learning and excellent emotional wellness experiences. We deliver the creatively-designed materials, inspired experiential training for your staff and support to help you light the fire for writers in your community!

Sparking Stories Is Only the Beginning For Us

5072 +

Stories Written Through Our Workshops

850 +

Writers Since We’ve Started

10000

People Turning 65 Daily

78 M

People Over 65 by 2035

7

States We Are Burning Brightly In

Benefits of Writing

Is Writing Beneficial? You Bet.

Writing allows for introspection, self-dialogue, and in Feet to the Fire Writers’ Workshops®, we nurture emotional well-being. The act of writing provides cognitive exercise and sharing your stories opens you up to others. It’s that simple. We need to be heard. And connected.

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Telling Your Story

You are the Author of Your Own Life.

Some legacy programs capture the story for you. We do legacy differently…YOU are the best authority on YOU. We encourage people to work hard to write the stories of their own life. They do the revisions, the edits, the stretching. And there is no “wrong way”. We give people the freedom to express themselves.

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Finding Purpose

We Spark Purpose and the Legacy Unfolds.

People want accountability and purpose, especially as they age! They want to know that their worlds matter. We ask a lot of them. We ask them to dive into the act of thinking about certain prompts, writing about stories they might not otherwise share. It’s personal and we know it adds meaning. The beautiful results: authentically-written stories that will last forever.

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Word on the Street

Lou Zelle

Age 97

This has really lead us into some mind-stretching! One of the things is the way it has taken me from place to place to place to place. You wouldn’t think at 97 there’s a whole new world to open up, but YES!

Ruth Meredith

Age 83

Now that I’ve remembered to write about certain times of my life, I can put the me that I was as a girl and the me that I was as a young woman and now an old woman…I’m sort of integrating myself. And I feel better about that.

Janet Seitzer

Family Member

I can’t tell you what a significant impact the writers’ group had in Mom’s quality of life over the last few years. It gave shape to her week, a task to complete, a chance to reflect positively on her life experiences and find her own voice, contact with an interesting, intelligent group of peers, and an opportunity to enjoy the stories shared by the others.

Diane Shott

Age 76

The one who enjoys these stories most is me! I get stuck reading my own tales instead of finishing the newspaper or paying bills, staying awake instead of taking a nap – a good thing!

Grant Bruton

Age 87

The value, as far as I’m concerned, is all the sudden I take pleasure in pursuing memories!

Susan McGarrity

Family Member

Feet to the Fire is a wonderful program that provided us with Mom’s memories that we would not otherwise have, but more importantly Mom got so much out of the program. She loved the writing and hearing what others wrote as well. She was growing up until the end because of the program.

Mary Jean Boone

Family Member

What an incredible gift “Feet to the Fire” has been to my father. He looks forward to Monday mornings with eager anticipation to share with his writers group his latest creation. We had always referred to dad as our family’s poet laureate and now, at 91 years young, he is still accomplishing great things.

Jackie Laskee

Public Relations Trustee, National Association of Activity Professionals

In the 35 years I have served in healthcare as an Activity Professional, I have never had the opportunity to offer such a structured class to residents. It inspired people to write their treasured memories; the workshop gave each and every resident a chance to experience a fulfilling accomplishment.

Mary Haynes

CEO, Nazareth Home

The elders who participated not only advanced their personal esteem through the process but many were able to bring some unfinished business to a close that had a profound impact on their quality of life. The Feet to the Fire program empowers. Empowerment is a powerful antidote to isolation and depression which regrettably often accompany advanced years.

Julie Smith-McLochlin

Lifestyles Coordinator, Miralea Active Lifestyle Community

Frankly, I can think of no other program that meets the entire scope of needs like Feet to the Fire Writers’ Workshops®. These workshops build community which creates those social connections which anyone in the aging field knows is an essential element to fostering healthy aging and well-being.

Hot off the Press

Our Founder

Writer. Teacher. Founder. Firestarter.

Angela Burton, Founder of Feet to the Fire Writers’ Workshops®, was inspired by her father, Joe Kirtley, who left a legacy of stories, essays and poems when he died. He needed connection to the world he’d once found comfort in, a “voice” and purpose to be heard as he aged. Feet to the Fire provides meaning for many, through the act of expressive writing. It works because it’s built around the human need to belong. It’s all about PURPOSE. Burton holds an MFA in Creative Writing from Vermont College of Fine Arts and has been inspiring writers for more than 25 years.

Angela Burton
Founder/Chief Writing Motivator

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